So Summer Ends

The kids have started school, and I can feel that change in the air that means winter will soon be upon us. Maybe it's because we didn't have much of a winter last year (we were still going to the park in December and my bulbs came up in February) but I am not dreading it. There is just a hint of anticipation. But I will miss being able to just load up the kids and find the nearest park. We did a lot of hiking this summer, at Mason's request. We also found some new hangouts, like the park that has chickens next to it, Beus' Pond Park, and the Ogden Nature Center North, which is just a cool, slightly creepy trail along the mountain. My kids are so fun. We had a good summer. Here are our cellphone pictures to prove it.

After we sold the house

When we realized that we were really going to be moving out of our house, we rushed to try and find a place to live. We settled on buying a condo in the complex we lived in when we were first married. It is just a two bedroom, and there is not a lot of storage, but we figured we could make it work for a while, at least until built our house, or found another place.

There was a transition period between selling and buying, so we moved into my parents' for a couple weeks. While we were there we realized the condo was just not going to work for our family, and we needed to find something else. We found a basement apartment in a good area in Pleasant View, and after seeing the space and the fenced yard and the good location, we practically begged the guy to let us rent from him. He said no at first (dog...four kids....) but then his other renter fell through and he relented.

So far it has been really good for us. The transition has been so much smoother than I expected. The kids are really happy here. Mason has been the biggest success. He has been so much happier since he finished school and we moved here. I think he kind of likes having everyone in the same room all the time. 

We found the one park in the area with shade, and we have been frequent visitors.

Farewell Perry

We sold our house.

Those are four words I wasn't sure we would ever say!

And we're so excited! But I have also been so, so sad. And stressed.

I really fell in love with this place. I never wanted to move back to the place I grew up. I kind of grew up feeling like getting out of there was a very necessary accomplishment. But then, sort of by accident, I did. And then I didn't want to leave. 

I loved our ward. I made a lot of really good friends there. And I feel like I grew a lot spiritually by having good teachers and being surrounded by good women with solid testimonies. The kids loved their primary teachers. I had good visiting teachers and I liked my callings and it just felt kind of right. And comfortable.

We had an incredible view of the valley from the back of the house, and a beautiful view of the hills from the front porch. Cul-de-sacs are awesome. The Wheelers next door were great neighbors and Melba was always bringing us bread and cookies. The pediatrician's physician's assistant lived just two houses down. 

There was a sense of familiarity in Perry and Brigham City that I know I won't get anywhere else. I knew who to ask for advice that I could trust. I knew where everything was and what opportunities were available there for my kids. I was starting to make friends outside the ward and my high school friends were close. I was seven minutes from my mom.

But then some of the friends I had grown to love moved away. And Mason started to learn to ride a bike, but couldn't leave our cul-de-sac. I couldn't send the kids out to play in the backyard, because I couldn't see the backyard unless I was in it. Everywhere I looked around the house I saw more projects that needed done but I didn't want to do them. Tim was getting more and more tired of driving 30 minutes each way to work. And some of the very few friends he had the chance to make were the ones that moved.

Basically, it was time for us to stick with the plan and pack our bags. It seemed like overnight, everyone wanted to buy our house. We got an offer from a couple from Texas and it actually worked out this time. And we moved out. I cried a lot. (I just had a baby, if you remember. I am going to blame a lot of the stress on hormones.) I still miss it, but I am excited about moving forward.

Oh winter, where art thou?

We just had the most mild winter. Last summer we had about three hot weeks, and the rest of the summer was nice and cool. It was a beautiful thing for a warm pregnant lady. This winter was about the opposite. It was warm. We played outside and went to the park in November, December, and January. February brought us a couple of cold weeks before it warmed right back up. 

We got a lot of rain and evidently a lot of snow in the mountains. But it was just so beautiful. And it was so nice being able to just play outside with the kids since I didn't want to take them to any germ-infested indoor playgrounds.

The kids were not as impressed. They had been so excited for winter and every time it snowed they were so excited. Tim had planned to take Mason and Brielle skiing, but there just wasn't enough snow to tempt him up there, so hopefully we get a little more next year.

The pictures below are just a few days apart in February.

The beginning of a new year

We had some big to-do's this year. A couple visits to the ER, a big RV project, new schools and activities. Best of all, a new baby. I spent most of the year pregnant, which....bleh. But now we have our perfect little Eric, and he keeps getting better and better.

He will be eight weeks old this week. He finally started smiling at me around six weeks old, and he still saves almost all of his smiles for his mama. The kids looks at me like his world begins and ends in my face, and I am just soaking in all the love I can get. He gets cuter everyday and so our streak of making the most adorable children around continues.

Everyone loves the baby and he gets his fair share of kisses during the day. He has started extending his first sleep of the night to about five hours, which is nice, but the rest of the night are still not always great. He has really turned a great corner personality-wise in the last two weeks - now that he is used to having a human body and is feeling a little better.

It has been a pretty overwhelming having four kids. I keep thinking of things I would like to take the older kids to do, but the thought of leaving the house with all four of them is just so daunting. I took all four to lunch at Sams Club the other day while Tim took a conference call at work on his day off and it went surprisingly well and I am still proud of myself. I had all four out in public for over an hour and I didn't threaten anyone and everyone left happy AND they were still pretty clean when we left. But still. It is terrifying.

Mostly it is Ava. She is just everywhere all the time. It is impossible to keep an eye on her in the confines of our own house, so anywhere else is a nightmare. When we got to the grocery store she won't sit in front of the cart, she won't sit in the big part, she won't walk, she won't ride on the side, and I can't hold her. But she also wants to do all of those things. At once. She just has so. much. energy. Add Mason's nearly constant pestering of Brielle and we basically just don't get out much.

All that being said, my life is so full. There is so much love and happiness to true enjoyment. Some days I feel like I could just sit and watch them all day. Every little mannerism, and their sweet little voices, and those giant imaginations all just fill me with so much satisfaction. I made these beautiful, innocent little creatures and now I get to enjoy them every day. Maybe the hard makes the good that much better.

We have been a little off our schedule this week and I guess Mason noticed because on Christmas Eve when he was going to bed he asked his dad to remind me that we need to read scriptures in the morning. I guess I'm not totally failing.

Since the last time I wrote

The weather has been so often cool and rainy this month that it feels like summer ended sometime in July, and we are currently enjoying Autumn. I am so excited for Fall this year. That is the first time I have ever said that in my life. It will probably be the last. It has been a wonderful summer,  but I am very pregnant, and I am ready for a wonderful Fall. And all the more concealing clothing that comes with it!

I've been terrible at taking pictures of all the fun things we've been doing. We went up the canyon with friends for foil dinners, s'mores, and bear hunts. We've gone to lots of parks and the splash pad and swimming pool. We've had play dates with new friends. We've jumped on the trampoline downstairs quite a bit when it was too hot to play outside. We drive by the lot we purchased in West Haven often. There have been BBQ's and family parties. Next week we will be going for a few days to Bear Lake to wind up the summer before school starts.

Last week we went for an overnight camp trip to Mirror Lake with Tim's parents, his brother John, and our nephews Taylor, Cole, and Cam. Ava had been sick all week, so we let her stay the night with Nana - which she loved and was actually a blessing because a brave 18-month-old and a lake wouldn't mix well. We bought little fishing poles for Mason and Brielle the week before we went and they couldn't wait to try them out.

Brielle got one fish on her line, but it got away because her mom couldn't figure out how to tighten the bale. They got to reel in a lot of fish on their cousins' lines. Mason loved that. He really just loved hanging out with his cousins and they are always so good with him. Both Mason and Brielle said that the fire was their favorite part. So easy to please! It was a great time.